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Tag: getting lost

On Thursday I drove from Lincoln, NE to Chicago. This was about a 500 miles drive. I was rejuvenated in the morning with a good breakfast at a Staybridge Suites in Lincoln, NE. I had a waffle, eggs, 2 sausages, and some coffee. Usually I am not a coffee drinker but I needed a little something. I also got into the Jacuzzi for a little while before getting on the road. It felt relaxing on all my muscles. I tried to stretch the night before and in the morning. Overall Staybridge Suites are nice and I would recommend them. However, I was a little upset when I was checking out of Staybridge as they had a “Arena Tax” and “Room/Occupancy Tax!” Wtf is that? Seems like a fee not a tax to me.

I mostly drove through Iowa all day on I-80 East. Iowa is not as bad as one might assume. They have Free Wi-Fi at a majority of the rest areas. Over 30 minutes though, then you need to pay. At least the rest areas are nice compared to a lot I have seen. The nicest places it seems to stop for a bathroom break I have found is state Welcome Centers. It makes sense since they want to encourage tourism.

I listened to a few things. Pimmslers Learn & Read Russian program which I got for Free on cassette at the Bookthing. Don't ask me why I want to learn Russian… you know… if it's Free it's for me! Russians is hard but I sort of learned a few words. I did need to do the first tape twice, but a little everyday. I also listened to Guns N Roses. Any Rock music is great for a roadtrip. When I was heading into Chicago I listened to James Herriots Animals Stories from the book All Creatures Great and Small.

I almost had a bit of a heart attack at rest area. When I opened the passenger car door to get out a drink… my nice camera, a Canon Rebel, fell out of the bag onto the pavement. I thought I might have broken it! Luckily I did not. The damage was just small scuffs.

When I was coming into Chicago I got a little lost. The GPS kept throwing me in weird directions then loosing the satellite signal. It was late, dark, and I was in a bit of a bad neighborhood. I thought I had gotten a map of Chicago before I left, so I pulled over and looked in my trunk… uh… oh … shit… no Chicago map! Argh! Well I called my relative and asked to GoogleMap it. Should have had a map. You can get Free ones through AAA or at Welcome Centers. They are quite useful to still have when mapping out routes through states and figuring out faster routes when there is traffic. Especially your GPS goes on the fritz!

I stayed up late the night before writing. Until about 2am. It's hard writing on the road and finding the energy. If you are a traveling writer, you need to get used to writing when tired or find a good day to write.